Making Their Mark

Your browser is not running JavaScript. Please check your settings.

Endowed Teaching Chairs Recognized

Celebrating the excellence of its professors, Miami Dade College recently announced the recipients for this year’s Endowed Teaching Chairs. Eight professors will join the list of 286 outstanding faculty members who have been honored by MDC since the trailblazing program began in 1992.

“These professors not only are exceptional in their teaching, they also are very dedicated to and caring toward our students,” said Randall Kaufman, the chair of the Arts and Sciences Department at MDC’s Homestead Campus who this year served as chair of the Endowed Teaching Chair committee.

“They are some of our most experienced people, our best faculty,” he said.

The eight were chosen from a list of dozens of prospective faculty members. In addition to their work in the classroom, these dedicated faculty members work on numerous MDC committees and represent the College in local, national and professional organizations. To be awarded an Endowed Teaching Chair, applicants undergo a rigorous screening process.

Dr. Miriam Abety, Andrew Blank Endowed Teaching Chair
Dr. Abety is an active member of the Learning Outcomes Assessment Team and The Earth Ethics Council; she has won several grants to build thriving learning communities.

Nora Dawkins, The Miami Foundation Endowed Teaching Chair
A member of the Sunshine State TESOL Executive Board, Professor Dawkins has taught at MDC for 19 years, contributing significantly to curricular innovation.

Lourdes España, Rotary Club of Miami Endowed Teaching Chair
As Mathematics Associate Professor, España spearheaded the award-winning Circle of Life Learning Community and participated in the USDA/HSI Education Fellows program this past July.

Ece Karayalcin, Women in Business Endowed Teaching Chair
In her 16 years at MDC, Professor Karayalcin has been instrumental in developing curriculum, creating documentaries and helping students excel in the film industry.

Magdalena Lamarre, MDC Alumni Association Endowed Teaching Chair
Since 2008, Professor Lamarre has strongly advocated for the understanding of the critical issues related to global genocide. Through educational innovation, she has increased awareness, fostered social responsibility and created strategies for prevention.

Juan Miguel Morata, Philip Morris Endowed Teaching Chair of Excellence in Agriculture and the Natural Sciences
Science Professor Morata has served as a faculty research mentor and served as a Co-Principal Investigator for numerous National Science Foundation grants.

Elena Pérez-Mirabal, The AT&T Endowed Teaching Chair in Communications
A 25-year veteran of MDC, English Professor Pérez-Mirabal has been co-chair of the Learning Outcomes Coordinating Council, contributing to the enhancement of teaching techniques at MDC.

Dr. Lenora Yates, HCA Healthcare Corporation Endowed Teaching Chair
Dr. Yates, a veteran nurse and educator, has put her rich experience to its best use not only by molding MDC’s nursing students into professionals, but also by helping the Haitian people through humanitarian aid trips since 2009.

Miami Dade College is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges to award associate and baccalaureate degrees.
Contact the Commission on Colleges at 1866 Southern Lane, Decatur, Georgia 30033-4097 or call 404-679-4500 for questions about the accreditation of Miami Dade College.
Miami Dade College is an equal access/equal opportunity institution and does not discriminate on the basis of gender, race, color, marital status, age, religion, national origin,
disability, veteran’s status, sexual orientation, or genetic information. Contact the Office of Equal Opportunity Programs/ADA Coordinator, at 305.237.2577 for information.